EarthRef.org Reference Database (ERR)
Development and Maintenance by the EarthRef.org Database Team

Detailed Reference Information
Fountoukis & Nenes 2005
Fountoukis, C. and Nenes, A. (2005). Continued development of a cloud droplet formation parameterization for global climate models. Journal of Geophysical Research 110. doi: 10.1029/2004JD005591. issn: 0148-0227.

This study presents continued development of the Nenes and Seinfeld (2003) cloud droplet activation parameterization. First, we expanded the formulation to (1) allow for a lognormal representation of aerosol size distribution, and (2) include a size-dependant mass transfer coefficient for the growth of water droplets to accommodate the effect of size (and potentially organic films) on the droplet growth rate. The performance of the new scheme is evaluated by comparing the parameterized cloud droplet number concentration with that of a detailed numerical activation cloud parcel model. The resulting modified parameterization robustly and closely tracks the parcel model simulations, even for low values of the accommodation coefficient (average error 4.1 ¿ 1.3%). The modifications to include the effect of accommodation coefficient do not increase the computational cost but substantially improve the parameterization performance. This work offers a robust, computationally efficient and first-principles approach for directly linking complex chemical effects (e.g., surface tension depression, changes in water vapor accommodation, solute contribution from partial solubility) on aerosol activation within a global climate modeling framework.

BACKGROUND DATA FILES

Abstract

Keywords
Atmospheric Composition and Structure, Aerosols and particles (0345, 4801, 4906), Atmospheric Composition and Structure, Cloud physics and chemistry, Atmospheric Composition and Structure, Pollution, urban and regional (0305, 0478, 4251), parameterization, CCN, cloud droplet
Journal
Journal of Geophysical Research
http://www.agu.org/journals/jb/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
2000 Florida Avenue N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20009-1277
USA
1-202-462-6900
1-202-328-0566
service@agu.org
Click to clear formClick to return to previous pageClick to submit